Elon Musk’s political affiliations have elicited intense backlash from Tesla owners. Many noisy liberals in the United States and what we call old Europe are expressing their outrage. His alliance with former President Donald Trump, which has since soured into public acrimony, has caused embarrassment for many who once proudly drove Tesla vehicles. As Musk’s rightward shift in politics continues to unfold, it raises concerns over the future of electric vehicle adoption and the broader implications for environmental efforts.
Recent studies indicate that Musk’s political stance has deterred many liberal consumers from purchasing Tesla vehicles or any electric cars. Alexandra Flores, a psychologist at Williams College and the lead author of the study, highlighted that “the suspicion is that Elon Musk became so synonymous with EVs in the US that perceptions of him affected the entire class of vehicles.” This well-documented decline in liberals’ intent to purchase EVs since March clearly shows up in the … In fact it has fallen into the negative, which is particularly difficult.
The data reinforces this trend: Tesla’s sales for the second quarter of 2025 dropped by 12% compared to the same period in the previous year. Consumer concerns born from tariffs and uncertainty around Tesla’s product offering have largely driven this decline. Moreover, the imminent expiration of federal tax credits for electric vehicle purchases—up to $7,500—has driven this fear, too. Erin Keating, an industry analyst, noted, “The removal of the tax credits may slow things down. It will hurt consumers’ perception of whether they can afford an EV or not.”
Musk’s dealings with Trump have not just affected the liberal American mood, but reversed it among conservatives. Polling data indicates that Republican voters have a more positive impression of Tesla than they did before. This change has not proven to make conservatives more likely to buy a Tesla—or any EV, for that matter. Flores elaborated on this dynamic, stating, “The attitude among conservatives to Tesla may be slightly less negative than before but that didn’t translate into the part of psychology of how they intended to behave.”
And as Tesla continues to deal with collapsing sales numbers, Musk was forced to admit that the company is looking at a “rough few quarters” in the public eye. This admission comes at a time of increased competitive pressures in the EV space and increasing consumer concern over product innovation. Keating pointed out that “they have had two major products that are major sellers. They haven’t changed them in years, and there is now a big influx of new and more exciting electric products out there.”
Further making controversy, though, are Musk’s political entanglements in other respects. Last week, reports circulated of Musk apparently performing a Nazi salute during a public appearance. This move alienated large swaths of his customer base. His appointment as an advisor to Trump was terrifying enough to many liberal constituents that they stormed his confirmation hearing. People who had previously worshipped at Tesla as a totem of innovative technology and sustainability were shocked by these cuts to fed workers.
Still, Keating is very bullish on the future of electric vehicles, even with these hurdles ahead. EVs aren’t going away – they might not get the kind of quick adoption we’re hoping for but it won’t just die off,” she explained. The toxic political climate makes it already difficult for manufacturers such as Tesla to read the pulse of consumer sentiment.
The ramifications of Musk’s political turn go well beyond consumer buying decisions. Flores cautioned that slowing EV adoption would push the brakes on our overall efforts to control climate change. He noted that the transportation sector is the largest source of U.S. planet-heating pollution. “One of the more troubling implications of our study is what this means for the climate,” she remarked.